Olympics: Dissidents' spouses face great strain

Amid the fanfare of the Olympic opening ceremony today, a
press release from Human
Rights in China highlights pressure on dissidents and their families as
Chinese authorities try to quash anything that threatens to disturb the long-awaited
Games. Police are watching jailed journalist Lu Gengsong's wife and daughter,
and they told the wife of recently detained online activist Du Daobin to change
her cell phone number and refuse calls, HRIC said. When CPJ called Du's home
the day after he was detained, we
were told the household had been warned not to talk to the foreign press.

Pressure on these families makes the cases difficult to
report. CPJ has been warned that for ethnic Tibetans, for example, the
potential repercussions of contact from abroad could outweigh the usefulness of
publicizing incidents where they are harassed for reporting.

In many cases, spouses are clearly aware of the
ramifications of their loved one's work. Some are plugged into a network of writers
and civil society activists and have a support network, either informally or through
organizations such as the Independent
Chinese PEN Center.

Activist and online commentator Hu Jia's wife Zeng "Tiananmen
2.0" Jinyan has been active publicizing the persecution she and her partner
have faced in their Beijing
neighborhood. While police have severely restricted her movements since her
husband's arrest in December 2008, she continues to update her blog (which was
not one of the ones recently unblocked in China for the
Olympics) and communicates with Twitter
updates. She has become a kind of Holy Grail for overseas journalists
seeking interviews.
Local bloggers and freedom of speech activists try to deliver baby formula to her
in guerrilla-style raids
on her housing compound.

In other cases, spouses are taken by surprise when punitive measures
are taken. Imprisoned journalist Qi Chonghuai's wife, Jiao Xia, was distraught about
his situation when she gave an interview to CPJ on the day of his recent trial. But during
the proceedings, The Associated Press reported, she appeared angry and shouted
at her husband.

Her reactions suggest the great emotional toll of the
surveillance and privation that face these women face while their husbands are
snatched away on vague charges such as endangering the Chinese state.

Madeline Earp is senior researcher for CPJ’s Asia Program. She has studied Mandarin in China and Taiwan, and graduated with a master’s in East Asian studies from Harvard. Follow her on Twitter @cpjasia and Facebook @ CPJ Asia Desk.